‘Ready!’ called Ari, and she moved between us, breaking apart our hands. ‘Sorry, I need to get in here.’ She snapped the latex gloves, just to make the whole experience even more unpleasant.
I closed my eyes, blood rushing to my head, heartbeat in my ears.
‘It’ll just take a second.’ Ari’s finger on my nose, the smell of the gloves reminding me of the dentist.
Snap!
‘Fuck!’ It felt like someone had stuck a lit match up my nostril.
I reached up and felt the stud. ‘Is that it? It’s in?’ I asked. I looked towards Theo.
‘Wow, babe, you look even whiter than usual. Doesn’t she, Ari?’
But their words sounded far away, and I was sweating. I needed a drink and felt like I was going to pass out.
Theo leaned in to get a closer look. ‘Looks good.’
‘Yeah?’ I asked, instinctively touching my nose and feeling the metal stud.
‘It’s all good, bitch. But your phone has been blowing up for the last five minutes.’ Ari dropped my phone on to my stomach, and I picked it up.
Six missed calls. From home. Shit.
‘My mum and dad,’ I said, pulling myself up. ‘They’re going to hit the roof when they see this.’
‘Fuck ’em. We’re eighteen. Adults!’ Ari scoffed. ‘And why are they so anal anyway? We’ve finished school.’
WhatsApp messages flashed up on the screen.
DAD: Margot where are you? You were supposed to be here an hour ago.
DAD: Come home now!
I sat up. Panicked.
‘Shit. Rue’s birthday,’ I said. I reached up to touch the stud in my nose again, then pulled my hand away because it hurt. ‘And I completely forgot. I better go.’
‘Sucks for you,’ Ari said, grinning.
I stood up and Ari air-kissed me goodbye. I held out my hand to pull Theo to the door with me.
‘Don’t worry about anything, babe. It’ll all be cool.’ He kissed me, slow and gentle. And I wanted to believe him.
But I knew nothing about going home right then would be ‘cool’.
2
Mum, Dad, Rue and Wren were at the kitchen table eating dinner when I got in. I could smell the spaghetti bolognese from the hall. Rue’s favourite. Obviously Wren wasn’t eating that. She was eating her trademark chicken nuggets, waffles and beans.
And she was the first one who saw me. She turned in her seat and it was like she was trying to warn me with her big blue eyes to turn round and run back out the door. But I was too slow.
Rue turned round and grinned at me. ‘She’s home. Dad, you can yell at her now.’
‘Girls, please take your dinner into the living room. Then we can have cake after.’
‘OK, Dad.’ Rue got out of her seat and picked up her plate. She threw me another smug smile and walked slowly and unsteadily across the tiles. Rue’s cerebral palsy hadn’t been diagnosed until she was three. The tightness in her legs made her unstable, so me and Wren were used to being careful around her. And I’d never admit it out loud, but right then I was ashamed to even think that I was tempted to trip her up and watch the spaghetti bolognese destroy the white walls.
Wren stopped beside me with her dinner. ‘Dad’s really mad,’ she whispered. ‘Tell him you didn’t do it. Whatever it was. Mum’s a little bit on your side,’ she whispered.
